A pregnant Kansas woman was killed when a fleeing robbery suspect slammed into her car — but her baby miraculously survived, according to her husband and local reports.
Brandon Russell said his wife Samantha Russell left behind a “beautiful gift of life” before she died of injuries she sustained in Tuesday’s crash.
The 22-year-old expecting mother was waiting at a stop light in Wichita at around 5 p.m. when a man in a pickup truck ran through the red light and hit her vehicle, as well as two others, KAKE reported.
Samantha, who was 33 weeks pregnant, was rushed to an area hospital, where she was pronounced dead two hours later.
But her baby, a boy named Mac, was delivered in the in the immediate aftermath of the crash, the Wichita Eagle reported.
The infant was initially “not doing so great,” but has since improved and “is expected to pull through,” though he remains hospitalized, Brandon told the newspaper.
“Sammy was taken from us but left behind the most beautiful gift of life,” he wrote on Facebook Wednesday, sharing a heartbreaking photo of himself cradling his son.
The grieving dad said that Samantha “was going to be a fantastic mother.”
He remembered his late wife as kind, driven and a hard worker, writing that she “always knew what to say when I was going through an issue or needed advice.”
“She was an all-around good person who did not deserve to die on impact from a reckless driver,” Brandon wrote. “She showed happiness to everyone and anyone that she knew.”
Police said the alleged driver, 37-year-old Javan Ervin, is in custody.
Ervin was suspected of robbing a hotel when he took off in his Dodge pickup, cops said. No one else was killed in the crash.
He was charged with first-degree murder in commission of a felony, aggravated battery and criminal possession of a firearm.